7 Painless Tips For Living Better on a Budget

For some, money is no object, and they are free to live life to the full. However, if that isn’t the case for you, it can seem tempting to borrow just to live like the rich. This leads to spiralling debt and a life of poverty. The 7 money management tips below will help you to keep more of your income and grow it.

1) Live within your means

It can be challenging not to compare yourself to others and want what they have. However, trying to keep up with others can lead you into a lot of debt, and working in order to repay lenders.

The U.K is a nation of borrowers and instant gratification. There are credit options for everything.

I live by a very simple rule, if I can’t afford to pay for something with cash, then I don’t deserve to have it. If I have no other option, I might ask a family member for money or use a 0% credit card or Ratesetter. Fortunately, after building an emergency fund, I am yet to come across a financial situation I haven’t been able to handle.

Once you buy an item on credit, the happiness can wear off very quickly. The country is filled with people who regret getting a luxury car on credit and paying a big portion of their salaries to repayments.

It is very challenging to build wealth and save if you need to make repayments. Don’t go broke trying to look rich to people who don’t care about you.

Set aside some money each month for “fun” and use it on luxury purchases.

2) Buy with vouchers

Instead of paying with cash, purchase a voucher at below its market value and use that instead. I purchase gift cards and vouchers from Zeek, Cardyard and Giftcardgranny.

Let’s assume you would like to buy a television from PC World for £500. After visiting Zeek you see that someone is selling £500 worth of PC World vouchers for £400. Therefore, you buy the vouchers from Zeek and use that to purchase the television thereby saving you £100.

I like to ‘stockpile’ vouchers after Christmas. This is because that is the time thousands of people place their unwanted vouchers on sale. As a result, I can snag a bargain. Over the course of a year, this method alone could save you hundreds of pounds.

3) Barter

Bartering dates all the way back to 6000 BC and is the act of trading goods and services without the use of money. It can be an effective way to cut down on costs.

For example, I had a friend who asked his wife to become a stay-at-home due to the high costs of childcare. However, his wife got together with a friend in a similar situation and they ‘synced their shifts. So one would work nights while the other works during the day. While one is out working the other takes care of their children. This cut childcare costs to zero and enabled them to work.

This is one example, but I have seen people trade accommodation in exchange for taking care of a house. The key for this to work is trust. If you have some friends who could benefit from bartering, find a way to strike a deal which works for everyone.

4) DIY

Instead of buying items, why not make them? Here is a list of 101 simple handmade gift tutorials. People tend to appreciate handmade gifts more than bought ones. Moreover, this can save you a lot of money during Christmas and birthdays. If you are entrepreneurial, you could even sell your creations on eBay and Etsy.

5) Sell your unused items

We live in a world which encourages materialism. Each day we are told that the more we have, the wealthier we are. Some companies suggest that wealth is how much you are able to spend. That is complete nonsense. You can’t shop your way to wealth. The only way to improve your financial situation is to either make more money or invest what you have been able to save. Ideally, you should do both.

Look around your home and find items which you no longer use. Take pictures of them using your smartphone and sell them on eBay. If you have a lot of unwanted clothes, electronics etc, you could sell them as a “job lot”.

Your home will feel so much neater after you go through the process of selling unwanted items. Plus, it will put some more money in your pocket, which is nice!

6) Search for vouchers when shopping online

Before buying anything online, I always look around for a voucher code. Recently, I saved a relative £80 just by doing a quick Google search. Just type in the store followed by “voucher code”.

You might be amazed at how much you could save,

7) Buy used or refurbished instead of brand new

Some people hate the thought of second-hand items; however, they are just pushing money down the drain.

Electronics and furniture can be purchased at bargain prices on the second-hand market. Plus, you can spot some products which are no longer available. In fact, you could launch a lucrative business on eBay buying and selling used items.

Final thoughts

We live in a world which promotes living life ‘to the max’. Big brands promote living a life of luxury. We are guilt-tripped on Valentines and Christmas to buy unnecessary items in the name of love. And if you don’t have money, you are encouraged to borrow – all to make big corporations and banks richer.

It is difficult to break past this mentality. However, you will struggle to move your life forward without assets and cash. I live a very simple life but can handle any life emergency because I have the cash to handle it. If you lost your job today, would you be able to cover yourself for one month? If the answer is no, you need to put money aside and implement the techniques above.

If you found this post useful, share it on social media. It helps me out a lot and helps the post reach more people. As always, I welcome your thoughts in the comments section below or get in touch.

For some, money is no object, and they are free to live life to the full. However, if that isn’t the case for you, it can seem tempting to borrow just to live like the rich. This leads to spiralling debt and a life of poverty. The 7 money management tips below will help you to keep more of your income and grow it.

1) Live within your means

It can be challengingnot to compare yourself to others and want what they have. However, trying to keep up with others can lead you into a lot of debt, and working in order to repay lenders.

The U.K is a nation of borrowers and instant gratification. There are credit options for everything.

I live by a very simple rule, if I can’t afford to pay for something with cash, then I don’t deserve to have it. If I have no other option, I might ask a family member for money or use a 0% credit card or Ratesetter. Fortunately, after building an emergency fund, I am yet to come across a financial situation I haven’t been able to handle.

Once you buy an item on credit, the happiness can wear off veryquickly. The country is filled with people who regret getting a luxury car on credit and paying a big portion of their salaries to repayments.

It is very challenging to build wealth and save if you need to make repayments. Don’t go broke trying to look rich to people who don’t care about you.

Set aside some money each month for “fun” and use it on luxury purchases.

2) Buy with vouchers

Instead of paying with cash, purchase a voucher at below its market value and use that instead. I purchase gift cards and vouchers from Zeek, Cardyard and Giftcardgranny.

Let’s assume you would like to buy a television from PC World for £500. After visiting Zeek you see that someone is selling £500 worth of PC World vouchers for £400. Therefore, you buy the vouchers from Zeek and use that to purchase the television thereby saving you £100.

I like to ‘stockpile’ vouchers after Christmas. This is because that is the time thousands of people place their unwanted vouchers on sale. As a result, I can snag a bargain. Over the course of a year, this method alone could save you hundreds of pounds.

3) Barter

Bartering dates all the way back to 6000 BC and is the act of trading goods and services without the use of money. It can be an effective way to cut down on costs.

For example, I had a friend who asked his wife to become a stay-at-home due to the high costs of childcare. However, his wife got together with a friend in a similar situation and they ‘synced their shifts. So one would work nights while the other works during the day. While one is out working the other takes care of their children. This cut childcare costs to zero and enabled them to work.

This is one example, but I have seen people trade accommodation in exchange for taking care of a house. The key for this to work is trust. If you have some friends who could benefit from bartering, find a way to strike a deal which works for everyone.

4) DIY

Instead of buying items, why not make them? Here is a list of 101 simple handmade gift tutorials. People tend to appreciate handmade gifts more than bought ones. Moreover, this can save you a lot of money during Christmas and birthdays. If you are entrepreneurial, you could even sell your creations on eBay and Etsy.

5) Sell your unused items

We live in a world which encourages materialism. Each day we are told that the more we have, the wealthier we are. Some companies suggest that wealth is how much you are able to spend. That is complete nonsense. You can’t shop your way to wealth. The only way to improve your financial situation is to either make more money or invest what you have been able to save. Ideally, you should do both.

Look around your home and find items which you no longer use. Take pictures of them using your smartphone and sell them on eBay. If you have a lot of unwanted clothes, electronics etc, you could sell them as a “job lot”.

Your home will feel so much neater after you go through the process of selling unwanted items. Plus, it will put some more money in your pocket, which is nice!

6) Search for vouchers when shopping online

Before buying anything online, I always look around for a voucher code. Recently, I saved a relative £80 just by doing a quick Google search. Just type in the store followed by “voucher code”.

You might be amazed at how much you could save,

7) Buy used or refurbished instead of brand new

Some people hate the thought of second-hand items; however, they are just pushing money down the drain.

Electronics and furniture can be purchased at bargain prices on the second-hand market. Plus, you can spot some products which are no longer available. In fact, you could launch a lucrative business on eBay buying and selling used items.

Final thoughts

We live in a world which promotes living life ‘to the max’. Big brands promote living a life of luxury. We are guilt-tripped on Valentines and Christmas to buy unnecessary items in the name of love. And if you don’t have money, you are encouraged to borrow – all to make big corporations and banks richer.

It is difficult to break past this mentality. However, you will struggle to move your life forward without assets and cash. I live a very simple life but can handle any life emergency because I have the cash to handle it. If you lost your job today, would you be able to cover yourself for one month? If the answer is no, you need to put money aside and implement the techniques above.

If you found this post useful, share it on social media. It helps me out a lot and helps the post reach more people. As always, I welcome your thoughts in the comments section below or get in touch.

About The Author

Hi, I am Abdul J.In the past, I made some stupid financial decisions. At one point I thought someone had hacked my account because I was spending a lot of money very quickly.After turning it around and helping close friends to get out of debt, I decided to branch out to a wider audience.My hope is that this site helps you to save more, discover new ways to increase income, and most importantly, live life to the max.